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In other news… Harmony Korine remakes cinema, retail therapy becomes a retail nightmare, and the tumult rocking Scooter Braun’s empire.
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ENTERTAINMENT
Agrro Dr1ft // Courtesy of Edglrd
Harmony Korine is trying to remake cinema
The Future. Filmmaker and painter Harmony Korine is taking his experimental, narrative-eschewing style to the next level with his new venture, Edglrd — a collective of artists creating hyperactive, interactive, and gamified entertainment. A response to dueling forces of corporatized franchise filmmaking and the fracturing of mainstream culture, Korine’s novel art form may not be for everybody, but it could become formative for a new generation of filmmakers looking to create a new lane in independent cinema.
Gamin’ it
Harmony Korine (Spring Breakers, Gummo) and a cadre of artists and video game designers are trying to create a new form of entertainment from a house in Palm Beach, Florida.
Edglrd is trying to blend the worlds of film and video gaming, creating projects using game engines, animation, imaging, AI, face swapping, and QR codes to break down the barrier of passively watching something and interacting with it.
The ambition is to create an art form that’s “tailored to young people, who are often overstimulated and attention deficient,” as they juggle multiple screens.
The aesthetic, which Korine dubs “gamecore,” asks: “what is the feeling of being inside of a game? Or even something close to a drug experience?”
Additionally, Edglrd has a hi-tech clothing component (one sweater has a working monitor on it) and a skateboard division.
Edglrd, which counts co-president of The Paris Review Matt Holt as its leading investor, already has two “blinx” (what they’re calling this new form of amorphous content) in the hopper — the Travis Scott-starring assassin movie Agrro Dr1ft (set to debut at the Venice Film Festival) and the first-person interactive robbery project, Home Invasion.
Ultimately, Korine hopes to get to the place where Edglrd is dropping a new project once a month by keeping budgets low and iterating on projects extremely fast.
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RETAIL
How shopping makes us feel now // Illustration by Kate Walker
Going shopping is losing its luster
The Future. Gone are the days of shopping being an American pastime — customers are reporting the experience has become a drag, with companies slow-rolling updates of their stores and workers feeling neglected. The consequence has been declining sales all around. But streetwear flagships and luxury outposts have demonstrated people want the experience of shopping… so brands that can reboot the in-store experience may be met with a wave of thankful customers ready to roam the shelves.
Retail anxiety
Retail therapy has become a retail nightmare, according to Vox.
Customers complain about empty shelves, locked-up items, and understaffing leading few people to man registers (pandemic changes that have solidified).
This has led to customers wanting to spend less time in store — a concept called “dwell time, ” which, when high, routinely leads to higher sales.
The recent downturn has led retailers to have less product in stock and fewer employees on the floor.
That creates more headaches for people who come in to shop, catalyzing a habit of “get in, get out” as fast as possible and kneecapping overall foot traffic.
Those forces have been terrible for retail employees, who are now dealing with cut hours, understaffing, rude customers, and automation… leading many to get out of retail.
This vicious cycle is a downward spiral for both retailers and customers, with investment bank UBS estimating 50,000 stores will close in the next five years. That means failing businesses, fewer options for customers, and fewer positions for workers. And strangely enough, e-commerce sales aren’t picking up the slack.
The takeaway? People want to shop, but they want a good experience. If you fix it, they will come.
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Billionaires wanted it, but 54,578 everyday investors got it first… and profited
When rare and valuable assets come up for sale, it’s typically the wealthiest people who end up taking home an amazing investment. But not always…
One platform is beating the billionaires at their own game, buying up and securitizing some of history’s most prized, blue-chip artworks for its investors. In just the last few years, its investors have realized annualized net returns of 17.8%, 21.5%, 35% and more from these opportunities.
It’s called Masterworks. And its nearly $1 billion collection includes works by greats like Banksy, Picasso, and Basquiat, all of which are collectively owned by everyday investors. When Masterworks sells a painting — like the 15 it’s already sold — investors reap their portion of the net proceeds.
It’s easy to get started, but offerings can sell out in minutes. However, as a trusted partner, FutureParty readers can skip the waitlist to join with this exclusive link.
See important disclosures at masterworks.com/cd
MUSIC
Like, "Baby, baby, baby, no" // GIF by Kate Walker
Hybe could sweat Scooter exits
The Future. The tumult rocking Scooter Braun’s music management empire is fueling a lot of rumors (and happy Swifties). While an air of mystery still surrounds the quick exits of his star clients, the exodus puts a spotlight on Braun’s evolving role in Hybe America. Could the departures simply be a shedding of talent before Braun shifts his focus entirely to the C-suite, or is everybody distancing themselves before a damaging story drops? Stay tuned.
Artist exodus
Scooter is at the center of some industry scuttlebutt.
Despite being a kingmaker for the past 15 years, star clients Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande, Demi Lovato, Idina Menzel, and J Balvin have all recently parted ways with him — with several just this past week.
That’s not just a major blow to Braun’s SB Projects, but it could also complicate Braun’s new position as CEO of Hybe America — the US division of K-pop powerhouse Hybe that represents BTS and other acts.
Hybe, which acquired SB Projects’ parent company Ithaca Holdings two years ago for $1.05 billion, was planning to raise roughly $380 million in an expansion move.
While there are conflicting reports if Bieber and Grande have really left (they’re likely mired in contract stipulations before anything can be publicly confirmed), the sheer number of departures over the short period of time can only mean that something big is going down with Braun — either business or personal.
Either way, it represents a huge change in the pop landscape… and may make other stars (or would-be Hybe America investors) hesitate to sign with his team until the dust settles.
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Dogs strike against kibble
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Highlights
The best curated daily stories from around the web
Media, Music, & Entertainment
According to Spotify, Eslabon Armado and Peso Pluma’s “Ella Baila Sola” is the song of the summer, ruling the platform’s overall global chart system — a big win for the rising genre of Música Mexicana. Read more → variety
Thanks to Barbenheimer, the summer box office is poised to hit $4 billion — a big recovery benchmark post-COVID and only the 13th time that milestone has ever been reached. Read more → deadline
No one — including the studio, producers, and director — is exactly sure who owns the sequel rights to the surprise movie hit of the summer, Sound of Freedom. Read more → variety
Fashion & E-Commerce
Sotheby’s and a roster of celebrities have been hit with a class action lawsuit alleging they artificially inflated the price of the Bored Apes Yacht Club NFT collection. Read more → cnn
Shopify will now let customers pay with decentralized payment protocol Solana Pay. Read more → techcrunch
Amazon is tapping talent from its Thursday Night Football programming to star in custom ads for Black Friday that will play during its newly-scheduled NFL game that same day. Read more → variety
Tech, Web3, & AI
India became the first country to land on the Moon’s south pole, also marking the first time it’s ever landed on the lunar surface. Read more → engadget
Twilio is rolling out “nutrition labels” for the AI services they offer businesses, being transparent on everything from data-collection practices to whether a human is regularly watching over the service. Read more → axios
Homeowners are biohacking their pads to become the epicenters of tech-based heath and wellness. Read more → wsj
Creator Economy
As TikTok Shop rolls out, the company is ending its storefront partnership with Shopify. Read more → insider
Twitch is debuting subscriber-only streams for Affiliated or Partnered creators. Read more → theverge
MrBeast’s latest video, a global competition among participants representing every country on Earth, has become a lightning rod of geopolitical controversy for how it determined nations and borders. Read more → techcrunch
JOBBY LOBBY
Explore a weekly curated list of the latest and greatest job opportunities in business, tech, and entertainment. For more listings, check out the complete job board.
Executive, Business Affairs (Broadcast News)
Creative Artists Agency (CAA)
New York, NY
Senior / Principal Software Engineer, Avatar Core Services
Roblox
San Mateo, CA
Business Process Manager
Adobe
San Jose, CA
Machine Learning Engineer, New Initiatives
Dropbox
Remote
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Today’s email was written by David Vendrell.
Edited by Melody Song. Copy edited by Kait Cunniff.
Published by Darline Salazar.